Australia’s most recalled vehicles in 2023

It’s a hassle receiving a recall notice for your car, but it’s a much better feeling than having your vehicle unexpectedly lose power or burst into flames.

A total of 592,941 vehicles were recalled in Australia in 2023, with the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts publishing 166 separate recall notices.

Many of these recalls involved potential fire risks or unexpected losses of power, while some were much more tame.

If we’re looking purely in terms of number of vehicles recalled, Mazda took the lead with 185,750 vehicles recalled – the bulk of which were part of a single recall for a flickering reversing camera.

In terms of the number of separate recalls issued, Mercedes-Benz held the lead with 33, running the gamut from misaligned headlights to several for potential fire risks.

Australia’s most recalled vehicles in 2023

As some recalls see multiple model lines lumped together, it’s harder to figure out which specific nameplate had the most examples recalled.

In terms of the total number of recalls issued for a model line, however, the Mercedes-Benz C-Class held the title as it was the subject of eight separate recalls.

It was followed by the Mercedes-Benz GLE (7 recalls), Range Rover (6 recalls) and Jeep Grand Cherokee (5 recalls).

The Kia Sorento and Sportage, Land Rover Defender, Range Rover Sport and Velar, and Mercedes-Benz Sprinter, E-Class and CLS were each the subject of four recalls.

We’re not going to act as arbiters of what is a major fault, and we’ve instead counted every single recall notice with an original publication date within 2023.

We’ve also counted every separate recall, even if the number of vehicles affected is tiny. For example, one Mercedes-Benz EQC recall from 2023 involved a single vehicle.

It’s worth noting the absence of a recall notice doesn’t necessarily mean the absence of an issue. Some companies may choose to be more proactive by issuing a recall sooner rather than later.

Total number of recalled vehicles

Total number of recalls issued

Chevrolet, Cupra, GWM, Holden, Lamborghini, Lexus, Mahindra, Maserati, MG, Polestar, Renault, Rolls-Royce, Skoda and Volvo all issued one recall each during 2023.